Hermione's Cousin
by Sugar High5
Summary: When Hermione's cousin comes to Hogwarts after her family is murdured by Voldemort, will Harry's wandering eye catch her's?
1. Introductions

Hermione's Cousin  
  
So, Harry. I wonder what frightening, near death sort of experience you'll have with You-Know-Who this year," Ron asked Harry far more cheerfully than could have been legal. "Hopefully none, but I don't have that kind of luck. I can't even get a girlfriend." Harry replied sullenly. Right now, he was heading off on the Hogwarts Express for his sixth year of school there. At this point, he was still heartbroken over the loss of his crush, Cho Chang, who had gone off chasing some Hufflepuff or another. 'Serves you right, I think,' Hermione had said. "Now you realize that just because you're Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived and all that, doesn't mean you can get every girl you want.' Which of course led to a whole argument that Hermione later blamed (rather embarrassedly) on PMS and a slight crush on Harry at the time. Which in turn got her a whole lot of teasing. Thinking of this brought Hermione to mind and made him wonder why she had yet to show up. Harry asked Ron, who attmited that he hadn't an idea were she was, either. A few minutes later, just as the train was about to leave, the compartment door flew open, revealing two laughing girls, one they knew and one they didn't. The one they knew was their one and only Hermione, only different. A lot different. She had somehow managed to straiten her hair, and it now fell down to the bottom of her shoulder blades in soft, shiny locks. Harry also saw that she hadn't lost her tan from the French Riviera last year. No one had been able to tell under her robes and all, but the fact was more than revealed by her lime green sun dress. Harry glanced over at Ron, who had attmited to Harry last year to having a crush on Hermione since their second year. His mouth was hanging open, but when he saw Harry's amused look, he quickly shut it. This time the fish expression was replaced by one of resolution and determination. It was more than clear to Harry that Ron was going to make his move this year. Hermione too was looking at Ron with a new interest. Harry was wondering what made Ron seem so attractive to Hermione this year as opposed to the last five they had spent together. Harry scrutinized Ron. 'Well, he is very tall, and becoming more muscular than lanky. And his face is in nice proportion. And that is a nice color blue for his eyes. Oh, great. Now I going to be jealous of my best friend because he's more handsome than I am.' Harry sighed and turned his attention to the other girl, who had slipped in and sat down next to Harry unnoticed in Hermione's wake (Hermione had taken a seat next to Ron). She was of medium height and tanned. It wasn't the kind of tan that you get for lying out in the sun for long hours, more the type gotten from hard work in the sun. She wore glasses, like Harry, but hers were brown and more like a cross between an oval and a triangle. Her eyes were brown, framed by dark lashes. Her nose was small and button like. She was thin, but healthy. Her body style was one that was heavy set, but thin because she worked so hard. Harry noticed that her feet were tiny, and that she had multiple bruises up and down her arms and legs, indicating to Harry that she was clumsy. Her hair was brown, and fell into soft curls halfway down her back. She noticed his gaze and smiled, revealing strait, white teeth on top and braces on the bottom. Her eyes laughed when she smiled, making Harry smile as well. She held out her hand and Harry shook it, feeling calluses. This one clearly didn't let others do the work for her. "Hello. I'm Kaela Lavin," she said as the train started to move. Her voice was husky, but nice to listen to all the same. "I'm Hermione's cousin." "Hi. I'm Harry," Harry replied. He didn't bother saying his last name, as he was sure Kaela already knew it. 


	2. Kaela's Story

A/N Hullo. For those of you who actually read my story, sorry it took so long to get the next chapter up. Y'see, I have exams next week, and I've been pretty busy with those (well, not really, but……..). Not to mention I've had my other story, which seems to be far more popular than this, to contend with. Oh, and I'm just warning you, this story is probably going to be really bad, since I don't know what I'm going to do with it. Oh well, read it anyway. Discailmer: I don't own anything except the plot and Kaela. I don't even own Mrs. Feazel. She owns herself, and will probably be teaching her eighth grade History class tomorrow.  
"Uh, I haven't seen you anywhere around the castle ever, and I thought Hermione didn't have any magical family members," Harry mentioned, uncertain because he was afraid of (1) offending Kaela and (2) making himself look stupid.  
"Yeah, about that. Y'see, I didn't know…., well, I s'pose I'd best start off at the beginning. Well, I got my letter inviting me to Hogwarts when I had just turned eleven, like so many others, and I really wanted to go. But my mother wasn't so sure. She said she didn't want me to be so far away from her, since she would be all alone with me gone (my father died when I was a little girl).  
"Uncle Tom(*)," Hermione said, now that she and Ron were both listening, too. "I barely remember him."  
"It's the same for me, y'know!" Kaela snapped back. She clamped her hands over her mouth. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Hermione. You know I'm touchy about that subject.  
"Well, anyways, I knew the real reason why she didn't want me to go. She hated the thought of my being able to enjoy something like that. She had always been like that, which was part of the reason I wanted to get away."  
"She sounds like the Dursleys in that respect," Harry commented.  
Kaela nodded. "Hermione told me one summer that one of her new friends lived with horrible people. She didn't mention your name though. If she did, I might of caught on, and this whole mess could of been avoided. I praise God she didn't mention your name. Well, my mom said she didn't want me going anywhere, so instead she had me contact the Ministry of Magic and made me appeal for a private tutor so I could have homeschooling. Unfortunately, they approved it. Well, maybe fortunately, because if they didn't, I might not of gotten any magical learning at all, and I would of had to live life as a muggle. I don't think I could been able to stand that. The years passed with my tutor and eventually, time came that Voldemort came back."  
Ron gasped when Kaela said this. Hermione looked positively proud. Harry was confused. "But-but you said…" he stammered, suprised. Kaela didn't look like the kind of girl you said the Dark Lord's name.  
"Hermione taught me never to fear a name, for that only increases fear of the thing itself," Kaela said knowingly.  
Harry remembered telling Dumbledore's words to Hermione. It appeared she had taken them to heart. "Please, continue," Harry invited with a smile.  
"Gladly," she replied. "The whole of the wizarding world was in a panic from the moment they found out who was behind the new killings. Except for me. I didn't understand. My tutor, Marie Feazel, always avoided the subject. All I understood was that my faithful tutor, who had pledged to my mom to continue teaching me until I learned all there was to learn on the subject of magic, had packed her bags and moved to live with relatives in America. It was after that when I started to get worried. Mrs. Feazel was the kind of person who looked at things that sent others into a panic strait in the eye and stuck her tongue out at it. I knew it must be bad if she was leaving. And it was. Only days after she left, a Death Eater showed his ugly masked face at my house and killed my mother. I was spared only because I was off buying milk at the corner store. When I returned, it wasn't hard for me to figure out what had happened. Her body was completely intact, she mouth just slightly open. I figure she had probably tried to match wits with him verbally. The house was exactly as I had left it, save the dead body and the refrigerator, which had been ransacked. I guess the Death Eater was pretty hungry. He managed to eat all of the cake that I had baked earlier that day. I wrote the Ministry of Magic for a second time, telling them what happened. They came and took care of my mother's body. Needless to say, I was pretty ecstatic she was gone. She had been nothing but horrible to me my whole life. Well, anyway, the ministry looked up my mother's will and it stated that if anything were to happen to her while I was still a minor, I was to go live with the Grangers. So they shipped me there and Hermione's mother and father had no choice but to tell me the truth about Hermione, and I had no choice but to tell them the truth about me. We were all pretty happy when we found out that Hermione and I, both born within months of each other and both very close, were also both witches. Hermione wrote Dumbledore, and they set me up a meeting a little while before school in late July. I met the teachers and staff, they tested me to see what year level I should begin at, and they gave me a private Sorting Ceremony. It turns out I'm a sixth year Gryffindor, like you guys and Hermione. The stupid hat nearly put me in Ravenclaw. It couldn't decide so it told the teachers I had the wits of Gryffindor and the natural quickness for connecting two and two of Ravenclaw. The teachers decided to put me in Gryffindor, where I already have family and at least one friend. I hope I'll do all right," she added when she was finished with her account.  
"I'm sure you'll do fine," Harry assured her. He liked Kaela already. She was kind and smart and brave and apparently a good cook. And good looking, too. Oh, yes. Kaela was very pretty. Harry was sure Ron would be ogling over her, had it not been for Hermione. Speaking of Ron and Hermione, they were talking on the other side of the compartment. Well, that's not entirely true. Hermione was talking, but all Ron seemed to be capable of doing was staring at Hermione and nodding every now and again. He had adopted the fish look again, too. Harry looked over at Kaela, who was staring out of the window, watching the scenery fly by.  
'Kaela seems like the kind of person I could become really good friends with. I hope she feels the same about me. But if I'm not careful, I might have another Cho incident. That wouldn't be pretty, especially with her being Hermione's cousin and all.' Harry looked at her again. 'Very careful.' He decided.  
  
A/N well there you have it, another crappy chappie (hey, I rhymed!). I acctually wrote this a while ago, before school ended even, I just never got around to putting it up. Sorry. Well, please review. 


	3. Musings About Harry

As Kaela watch the countryside out of the compartment window, she had many things on her mind. Things like Hogwarts, the teachers, the students, and the story she had just told were all of the ones that were to be expected. But the think that stood out most in her mind was the boy sitting next to her.  
'I'd of never guessed that about Harry. I mean, sure. I knew he was brave, after being in Gryffindor and facing down Voldemort so many times. But to think, he's also kind and probably really smart and awfully handsome, too.' Kaela thought back to when her breath caught in her throat when she looked into his deep, sparking green eyes, first out of politeness, then because she couldn't look away. His body, too. He looked nothing like the picture of the lanky, half-grown boy taken at the end of his first year. His muscular build and chiseled chest bore no resemblance to the boy he use to be. And franky, Kaela wasnt at all opposed to the change. 


End file.
